There Has Only Ever Been One Person in My Heart
Ye Chenxing jumped at the sound of that voice and hurriedly hid behind Ji Chaoyun. “F-F-Feng—”
“...” Ji Chaoyun had wanted to hide as well, but unfortunately, Ye Chenxing had moved faster. He could only brace himself and meet the other man’s gaze.
Feng Qi leaned forward slightly and knocked away Ye Chenxing’s hand from Ji Chaoyun’s arm. He pulled Ji Chaoyun into his embrace, then lifted his chin at Ye Chenxing. “Go on. Who has more wagers on him?”
“The w-wagers... Naturally, more people wagered on Second Highness Feng.” Ye Chenxing gave a dry laugh. “You two talk. We’ll go prepare first.”
With that, he grabbed Bei Ran beside him and fled in a hurry.
“You two—” Ji Chaoyun opened his mouth, but the pair had already vanished.
He fell silent for a moment, then pushed at Feng Qi. “Let go of me. There are so many people here.”
“Let them look.” Not only did Feng Qi refuse to release him, he deliberately tightened his arms instead. Taking advantage of his greater height, he completely enclosed Ji Chaoyun in his embrace. “Is there anyone in all of Hongmeng Academy who doesn’t know you’re mine?”
Feng Qi was a full head taller than Ji Chaoyun. Ji Chaoyun struggled briefly but could not break free.
Ji Chaoyun glared at him without speaking. Feng Qi tilted his head. “Why were you hiding from me just now?”
“...” Ji Chaoyun said, “I wasn’t hiding from you.”
“You were. Not only that, you were even discussing with someone behind my back who the person in your heart is.” Feng Qi looked at him with a smile. “Tell me, little dragon. Who is the person in your heart?”
The moment Ji Chaoyun heard that tone, he knew a certain someone’s old habit was acting up again. He snorted, too lazy to argue with him. “What vinegar are you drinking for no reason? If you don’t know, forget it. I’m not telling you.”
Feng Qi chuckled softly. “Who said I was drinking vinegar?”
Ji Chaoyun glanced sideways at him. “What? Second Highness Feng dares to do it but doesn’t dare admit it now?”
Feng Qi did not argue. Instead, he leaned close to Ji Chaoyun’s ear and whispered, “Fine. I dare to do it, and I dare to admit it. Just you wait. I’ll deal with you when we get back.”
The blatant implication in those words made Ji Chaoyun shudder from head to toe. His legs nearly went weak, but Feng Qi merely gave his waist a meaningful pat before finally letting go.
In the distance, the several attendant disciples who had accompanied Feng Qi were already preparing for the drawing of lots.
Feng Qi tilted his head slightly and lowered his voice. “I’ll be drawing the lots later. Want to hurry up and bribe me so I can draw you an easy opponent?”
Ji Chaoyun said, “No need.”
“That confident?” Feng Qi raised a brow. “You only get one chance in the preliminary trial. If you lose, you won’t be able to participate in this Heavenly Ranking Tournament. If that happens, you’ll only be able to stand below the stage and cheer for me.”
Ji Chaoyun looked up and gave him a faint smile. “That won’t happen. Trust me.”
Even though Feng Qi had long grown accustomed to this man’s smile, he still froze for a moment.
The smile itself was no different from usual, yet Feng Qi clearly saw something different in Ji Chaoyun’s eyes. It was an innate pride and confidence. For a fleeting moment, Feng Qi seemed to glimpse the Dragon Crown Prince of three hundred years ago.
Something stirred in Feng Qi’s heart, and he wished he could pull Ji Chaoyun into his arms and kiss him fiercely.
His hands practically itched with the urge, but there were plenty of people watching from every direction. If he started touching Ji Chaoyun now, he feared he could forget about spirit cultivation for the next several days.
Feng Qi endured and endured before finally squeezing out, rather gloomily, “Just you wait.”
“?”
Ji Chaoyun blinked in confusion. Before he could say anything, an attendant disciple approached them.
“Second Highness Feng, we can begin.”
Feng Qi answered, “I’ll be right there,” and sent the disciple away. Then he turned to Ji Chaoyun and whispered, “I hope a certain little dragon keeps his word and wins this preliminary trial. Your husband has a reward for you tonight.”
With that, he swaggered away beneath Ji Chaoyun’s indescribable stare.
A massive spell formation opened across the Sword Practice Grounds, serving as a temporary arena for the matches.
A lot-drawing cylinder was placed before the arena. Feng Qi walked up to it, cleared his throat, and announced loudly, “This cylinder contains all your names. I’ll draw two at a time, and those two will enter the formation to compete. There’s no need to repeat the rules. No cheating and no injuring anyone. Whoever first leaves a mark on one of their opponent’s vital points wins.”
“One more reminder. Move quickly. If you can’t win, admit defeat and get it over with. Don’t waste everyone’s time.”
Feng Qi never sounded particularly proper when he spoke. The disciples below could only swallow their complaints and nod in agreement. Feng Qi smiled in satisfaction, reached into the cylinder, and drew the first name.
He glanced at it and immediately froze.
Feng Qi stared at the slip bearing the name for a long while. The corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably, revealing a rather helpless smile.
When he remained silent, some of the disciples below seemed to realize something and deliberately teased him.
“Who did Second Highness Feng draw? Why aren’t you reading it?”
“Weren’t you the one who just told us not to waste everyone’s time? Hurry up, Second Highness Feng.”
“Whose name could possibly make Second Highness Feng too embarrassed to read it aloud?”
...
“All of you, shut up!” Feng Qi laughingly cursed them, cutting off the chatter below. He cleared his throat again and said seriously, “Let me make this clear beforehand. I really didn’t cheat. If you don’t believe me, one of you can come up and check.”
“...The first contestant, Ji Chaoyun.”
Feng Qi might usually behave without much decorum, but the disciples trusted his character. Naturally, no one suspected him of cheating.
Instead, the result only made the teasing grow louder.
Amid the jeers and cheers, Ji Chaoyun slowly walked forward, the tips of his ears hidden beneath his hair quietly turning red.
Feng Qi did not immediately draw his opponent. Instead, he simply watched Ji Chaoyun approach.
Made somewhat uncomfortable by his stare, Ji Chaoyun murmured, “How could it be such a coincidence...”
“Indeed. I don’t know why it’s such a coincidence either.” Feng Qi casually ruffled his hair and said warmly, “Perhaps even the Heavenly Dao can tell how much I love you.”
He had made no effort whatsoever to lower his voice, and everyone present heard him clearly. The cheering immediately grew even louder. Ji Chaoyun’s face burned so fiercely it seemed ready to catch fire, and he hurriedly said, “I-I’m going in first!”
Feng Qi watched him practically flee into the formation and could not help laughing aloud.
“All right, Second Highness Feng, we know you love each other. Hurry up and draw the next person.”
“Draw me, draw me! I want to fight Junior Brother Ji!”
“You’d better not pray that you’re chosen. If you accidentally hurt him, I’m afraid you won’t make it out of the Sword Practice Grounds today.”
Ji Chaoyun quickly entered the spell formation, finally shutting out the voices outside.
Feng Qi seemed to say something else outside, prompting the disciples to burst into laughter. Ji Chaoyun’s ears burned as he lowered his eyes and pretended not to notice.
A moment later, the formation stirred, and another disciple entered.
His name was Du Qingyang. Like Ji Chaoyun, he had enrolled this year. His cultivation and martial skills were both quite good, placing him among the upper-middle ranks of the Yellow-rank disciples.
The two stood on opposite sides of the formation. Du Qingyang smiled. “Chaoyun, ready? I won’t go easy on you.”
Ji Chaoyun calmly replied, “I will naturally do my best.”
The importance of the Heavenly Ranking Tournament to Hongmeng Academy’s disciples went without saying. It only came around once every ten years, and no one wanted to be shut out before they could even enter. Naturally, there was no question of deliberately holding back.
Du Qingyang paused, then suddenly said, “By the way, Chaoyun, we hardly ever see you. There’s something I wanted to ask you while I have the chance.”
“What is it?”
Du Qingyang hesitated for a moment before asking with utmost seriousness, “Between Feng Qi and Feng Xiao, which one do you choose?”
“...” Ji Chaoyun had not expected that question and did not know whether to laugh or cry. “Is this about the betting pool again?”
“Of course.” Du Qingyang sighed. “You know how it is for people like us with neither an immortal estate nor anyone powerful backing us. We don’t have much saved to begin with. Give me a hint beforehand so I can prepare.”
Ji Chaoyun asked, “Who did you wager on?”
“Divine Lord Feng Xiao, naturally.”
“So more people wagered on Feng Xiao?”
“Well...” Du Qingyang glanced at Feng Qi outside the formation and lowered his voice. “You absolutely cannot tell Second Highness Feng this. His odds are one to one hundred.”
“...”
Ji Chaoyun felt helpless. Naturally, he could not tell Feng Qi about this. Who knew how much vinegar that phoenix would end up drinking otherwise?
He shook his head. “Let’s talk about this after the match.”
“Right. The match first.”
The two put away their joking expressions and bowed to each other. The instant they straightened, Du Qingyang made the first move.
Whoever seized the initiative in a match naturally gained the greater advantage.
Du Qingyang rushed forward while drawing a long spear from his sleeve. He turned the spearhead and thrust straight toward Ji Chaoyun.
Outside the formation, Feng Qi narrowed his eyes with concern.
Du Qingyang’s cultivation was not low. Had this been the Ji Chaoyun of the past, there would have been no certainty of victory against him. Over the past several days, Ji Chaoyun’s cultivation and spiritual power had clearly improved. Feng Qi simply did not know how far that improvement had gone.
Thus, even Feng Qi could not say how great Ji Chaoyun’s chances of victory were.
He soon found out.
Within the formation, Du Qingyang closed in on Ji Chaoyun in the blink of an eye. Yet Ji Chaoyun did not evade nor did he even draw his sword. He merely raised a hand at an unhurried pace. A column of water surged from the ground before him, instantly concealing his figure.
Du Qingyang swept his spear across and severed the water column at its middle, only for another column to suddenly rise.
Again and again, the spear swept through the columns of water, yet each time another barrier stopped him from advancing. With his vision obstructed, Du Qingyang grew anxious and began darting around in search of Ji Chaoyun.
Only the disciples outside the formation could see clearly that Ji Chaoyun had not moved even half a step.
A faint smile appeared on Ji Chaoyun’s lips.
Suddenly, he moved.
The instant he did, every column of water vanished. Ji Chaoyun’s figure closed in on Du Qingyang like a specter. One hand seized the shaft of the spear while the other struck out lightly.
Du Qingyang felt his grip go numb from the impact. His hand loosened, and the spear was already in Ji Chaoyun’s grasp.
The next instant, the spear reversed direction and pointed at Du Qingyang’s throat.
The spearhead lightly tapped his throat, leaving behind a shallow red mark.
Ji Chaoyun had won.
From beginning to end, he had not even drawn his sword.
Ji Chaoyun withdrew the spear and held it out horizontally before Du Qingyang. “You were gracious.”
Du Qingyang stared at him blankly, unable to react for a moment.
Ji Chaoyun had gone to the Mortal Realm for training three months ago. After returning to the academy, he had hardly attended a proper lesson. Everyone’s impression of him was still that of the little demon dragon from three months ago whose cultivation had been pitifully weak.
When had his cultivation become this powerful?
Du Qingyang was stunned.
The Yellow-rank disciples present were stunned.
Even Feng Qi, watching from outside, was stunned.
Feng Qi stared at that slender figure for a long while, looking somewhat perplexed.
Was spiritual cultivation... really this effective?
Inside the formation, Du Qingyang dazedly accepted his spear back, only to hear Ji Chaoyun say softly, “There has only ever been one person in my heart.”
“Who?”
Ji Chaoyun shook his head and offered no further explanation. He turned and walked out of the formation.
From Du Qingyang’s position, he could immediately see Feng Qi standing at the very front of the crowd, gently applauding Ji Chaoyun.
The gaze Feng Qi fixed upon Ji Chaoyun was so tender it practically overflowed with warmth, giving Du Qingyang goosebumps all over.
So... the answer was Feng Qi?
The moment Ji Chaoyun stepped out of the formation, enthusiastic cheers and applause erupted around him.
He paid no attention to any of it and walked straight to Feng Qi.
Feng Qi said, “Congratulations. You’re the first Yellow-rank disciple to qualify for the Heavenly Ranking Tournament.”
Ji Chaoyun glanced around as though trying to appear calm and indifferent, yet the unmistakable pride in his eyes betrayed him. “How did I do?”
With his current cultivation, he would have won even faster if he had used his sword. Yet he had deliberately chosen to use spells he rarely employed before.
Ji Chaoyun did not care what anyone else thought of him.
There was only one reason he had done this.
He wanted Feng Qi to see how much he had improved.
Feng Qi stared at the person before him and was nearly overwhelmed by how adorable that carefully hidden little thought was.
There were still many people watching below. Ji Chaoyun grew uncomfortable as he waited, yet stubbornly asked again, “I’m asking you. How was I?”
“Really good.”
Feng Qi took in that little expression waiting to be praised, his heart itching unbearably. He bent close to Ji Chaoyun’s ear and said softly through gritted teeth, “So good that I want to kiss you right now.”
“...Kiss you until you cry.”
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